keithsnyder Posted August 16, 2006 Share Posted August 16, 2006 Does anyone have experience with off-brand flashes? The 5600 is expensive, and the Sigma EF-500 is less so, but still sets the pocketbook back a bit. I see one posted on ebay called Thyristor, which is really cheap by comparison, showing swivel head, TTL, etc. The auxilliary flash that worked with my Maxxum 5 doesn't with the 5D, so I'm in the market for another. I don't do much indoor photography, but might if I got better results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_paul1 Posted August 16, 2006 Share Posted August 16, 2006 "Thyristor" refers to the circuitry of the flash, and is probably not the name brand. In the 'old' days of elctronic flashes, the unit would dump all the power in the capacitors, even if it was not needed. This led to longer recycle times and shorter battery life. The thyristor circuit allowed the capacitor to only discharge the amount of power needed to light the subject, which meant shorter recycle times and longer battery life. For example if the subject to be lit is close to the flash and only needed a little bit of flash, the flash would be able to cut the flash time and conserve power. In the old days, the flash output was not controlled. Most if not all flash units on the market, are thyristor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam_marsh1 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 When you say the flash you used on your Maxxum 5 won't work on the 5D what do you mean exactly? If you mean you don't get the ADI metering then fair enough and you'll have to pay a good amount to get a flash that does. However, I'd be surprised if you couldn't get it firing at all. Which flash is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_thomas1 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Usually thrysistor is referring to a non-ttl auto flash. What that means is that there is a sensor on the flash and it measures the light that returns to it and shuts the flash off when it determines that it has had enough. This is a cheaper option than the flashes that allow the 5D to determine how much light to put out, but you have to coordinate the flash and the camera yourself. I have the 5D and am currently awaiting the arrival of my FS1100 shoe adapter (actually a generic one). I received my Nikon SB24 this week. The Nikon was cheap ($60) and has low trigger voltage (won't fry your camera) and 6 auto settings (f2 to f11 for 100iso). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmphoto1 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Do any of the Maxxum flashes with the maxxum shoe have Auto? 5600 and 3600ford not, neither do the new Sonys. chad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig_gillette Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 There was a discussion on Dpreview on "Auto" and the new Sonys are like the 3600 and 5600 - no "Auto." I'm currently using a Vivitar 285hv wih the fs1100 adapter. I'd think a Sunpak 383 would also be a reasonable choice with similar performance, with swivel head (but no zoom). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuclearfurnace Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 My Vivitar works well for me. Of the two that I own, one is over fifteen years old and all that was required for the Maxxum 7 was a new base/shoe. Obviously the newer the model, the more options it may contain, but my old Vivitar is still strong and my prefered choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_thomas1 Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Just received my generic fs1100 yesterday. They work great (I got two). They have the benefit of having a pc connection as well. I'm a little nervous about the SB24 on it as it seems a little precarious. I'll have to give it some time; it seems sturdy enough for normal use. I haven't actually seen the real fs1100, so I can't compare the two. If anyone's interested, the sellers name is something like Gadget Infinity. Shipping took less than two weeks from Hong Kong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerund Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Have you checked out the Promaster 7500 DX at one call. This is supposed to be compatible with the 5D. Gerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithsnyder Posted August 18, 2006 Author Share Posted August 18, 2006 I have a 2000xi flash, but the 5D takes a 2500 (I think), as well as the 3600 and 5600. I tried to make my old flash fire on the new camera, but nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig_gillette Posted August 19, 2006 Share Posted August 19, 2006 The real FS1100 seems a bit precarious as well because it's sized like the camera/flash shoes it fits between. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam_marsh1 Posted August 19, 2006 Share Posted August 19, 2006 Keith - that's strange. I've tried a couple of different flashes out on the 5D and have had no problem making them fire. I would have assumed that that flash would work fine. Have you tried all the usual checks like batteries, clean contacts etc? I guess it's possible that your 5D hotshoe isn't working properly (unless you know otherwise). If you've got a friendly local camera shop why not take it in to test it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig_gillette Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 An older ttl type flash compatible with the 5 should fire, but would only fire at max flash typically. that's why I went back to using the plain auto flash on the adapter, nne of the ttl flash functions carried forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithsnyder Posted August 21, 2006 Author Share Posted August 21, 2006 I made sure the flash worked by putting it on the Maxxum 5. However, I live about two miles past the edge of the world, so there is no camera shop to which to take it to see if the hotshoe is malfunctioning. However, I will try to next time I'm out of town. I just got the camera as a factory reconditioned unit, so I'll be kinda surprised if they didn't check to see if the flash fires. The literature lists three flashed for the 5D, and the 2000xi isn't one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam_marsh1 Posted August 23, 2006 Share Posted August 23, 2006 Good luck with this. You might be interested to see the thread higher up the page on the compatibility of old lenses and flashes with the new Sony Alpha camera. I'd guess it pretty much applies to the 5D and 7D as well. It suggests that the 2000xi should work without the metering OK. Here's the link to the Sony site: <a href=http://support.sony-europe.com/DIME/digistill/alpha/compatibility/flash.asp?l=en&m=DSLR-A100>http://support.sony-europe.com/DIME/digistill/alpha/compatibility/flash.asp?l=en&m=DSLR-A100</a> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiun_der_chung Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 My understanding is that only the D series of flashes will work with the 5D and 7D in automatic mode. All non-D flashes will either operate on full power or in manual mode only. The reason for this is apparently (someone who knows more can correct me on this) because film cameras use the reflection off the film to calculate correct exposure. Digital cameras cannot do this due to high reflectivity off the sensor and have to use pre-flash in order to calculate exposure. So the short answer is you need a D flash, whether it is Minolta, Sony or another off-brand. But if you don't need a lot of power, just rely on your pop-up flash. It will produce decent results as long as you aren't too far away from your subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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